London-based entrepreneur Laurence Kemball-Cook
plans to change the world one step at a time. Literally. His
company, Pavegen, has created a technology that harvests energy
from individual footfalls.

Pavegen tiles harvest electricity from
footfalls

The idea is simple: each time someone walks over
one of the 17.7-by-23.6-inch tiles, it flexes a slight 5
millimeters, capturing the kinetic energy and converting it to
electricity. The energy harvested can immediately drive low-power
applications like lighting and signage, or be stored in an on-board
battery for about three days.

With the need to minimize our carbon footprint
growing, Pavegen offers an interactive way for people to engage
with sustainability. In addition to harvesting clean power
sustainably, the tiles themselves are almost completely made from
recycled materials — making them even more eco-friendly.
Top surface is 100% recycled rubber from tires, while the base is
made from more than 80% recycled materials.

Kembell-Cook originally developed the idea while
working on his industrial design degree at Loughborough University.
Assigned to look into solar and wind energy prospects in urban
areas, he realized that it would be more suitable to take advantage
of power being generated on the ground.

Applications

The tiles are designed for use in harsh outdoor
locations and well-trafficked urban environments, like pedestrian
malls, city streets and transportation hubs. In addition to being
completely waterproof, they can either be installed in pre-existing
flooring systems or included in new developments.

Nearly 30 projects have been installed
throughout Europe, including a recent 12-tile installation on a
walkway that connects the West Ham tube station to The Queen
Elizabeth Olympic Park in London. Over the course of the Games, the
tiles experienced nearly 1 million footsteps and generated 20
kilowatt-hours of energy, enough to keep streetlamps at full power
throughout the night.

12 energy-harvesting tiles line a walkway
near Olympic Park.

The tiles have also been installed in schools
throughout London. Since 2010, four Pavegen tiles have lined a
hallway at the Simon Langton Grammar School for Boys near
Canterbury, capturing energy from its 1,100 students to keep the
corridor lit. At another school in Kent, 50% of the electricity
generated is used to power fun, interactive and educational
displays in the hallway, while the other half is used to light the
hallway.

“The product itself has been a delight
and has captured the imagination of our students,” says
Ken Moffat, head of school at Simon Langton School. “It
is robust enough to withstand the constant footfall and attention
of over 1,000 students and has generated a significant amount of
energy”

The technology also has applications as a
lighted dance floor and a people-powered mobile phone charger.
During one temporary installation of the tiles, 250,000 steps were
enough to charge 10,000 mobile phones.

Kickstarter Campaign

The company currently has a
Kickstarter project to fully fund Pavegen installations in two
schools: one in the U.S. and one in the U.K. In addition to
installing the tiles and interactive educational displays, the
company will also install remote monitoring equipment, designed to
collect and share data about the output and performance of the
technology. Running until January 28, the campaign allows backers
to vote for the winning schools.

Students walk down a hall powered by
Pavegen tiles.

The Future of Pavegen

Currently, the team is working on a system that
will connect the tiles to an electrical grid, and while mechanical
tests suggest that the tiles will last at least five years, the
team would like to come up with a version that can survive in the
wild for at least 20 years.

Of course, pricing is a factor. So far, early
versions of the tiles have been prohibitively high for the common
consumer, but Kemball-Cook says that the price has dropped 70
percent in the past year. He’s confident that once the
company reaches a tipping point and economies of scale kick in, the
tiles will sell for as low as $50 each.

The average person takes 200 million steps in a
lifetime. What will you power with yours?